Angel Di Maria and Alexis Sanchez were two of the outstanding players in Arsenal's FA Cup quarter-final win over Manchester United at Old Trafford. Here, Andy Hampson analyses their performances.

OVERALL CONTRIBUTION:

DI MARIA: Completely blotted his copybook with his sending off, first with his initial booking for diving and then his second for for grabbing referee Michael Oliver. Prior to that he had been one of United's most influential players.

SANCHEZ: Arguably the best player on the pitch. Did not stop working or seem to tire in defence or attack. His excellent display lacked only a goal.

MOVEMENT IN POSSESSION:

DI MARIA: Cut in from the right to cross with his left foot to great effect in the first half, not least with the superb cross for Rooney's goal. He grew as a threat running with the ball but went to ground too easily for Oliver's liking, prompting the chaos which led to his red card.

SANCHEZ: Demanded possession from the outset and made great use of it, regularly running at the defence or opening them up with probing passes. Retained possession well and hard to knock off the ball.

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Wayne Rooney

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Best off the bench: Michael Carrick

His passing radar kept United ticking and allowed them to dominate possession, even if that wasn’t enough to carry his side through. 6

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Wojciech Szczesny

A dropped cross in the first half could have been calamitous as throughout the match he seemed to be lacking the confidence usually associated with him. 5

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Hector Bellerin

An early yellow card put a target on his back but he continued in his usual fashion, a pacey presence in attack and defence. 6

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Per Mertesacker

Implausibly gave away a corner early on as nerves looked to be getting the better of him, he struggled aerially against Fellaini and Rooney. 5

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Laurent Koscielny

The Frenchman brought invaluable composure to the Arsenal defence, the rarity with which he ever had to step in a testament to his organisational skills. 7

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Nacho Monreal

Exceptionally threatening going forward, he picked up a well-deserved goal. But the Spaniard was too timid around Di Maria, giving him space to cross. 6

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Francis Coquelin

A quiet game from the powerful Frenchman but that is just what Wenger would have wanted. His tackling continues to be ferocious. 6

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Santi Cazorla

His range of passing was vital to Arsenal’s counters and he even displayed his recently discovered tackling ability when the visitors needed to defend. 7

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Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain

Enjoyed his duel with Shaw and his powerful running created Arsenal’s first. The visitors missed his explosiveness after he went off injured. 7

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Mesut Ozil

Peppered the contest with moments of pure class, his understanding of space and his colleagues’ movements brightened Arsenal’s play and found their first goal. 8

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Alexis Sanchez

As ever the Chilean was full of energy and menace, his passes always seeming to put Arsenal in a more dangerous attacking position. 8

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Danny Welbeck

He even managed to make an open goal look difficult but nevertheless he got his goal and his energy caused problems for Rojo. 7

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Best off the bench: Aaron Ramsey

His driving runs from deep gave United’s defence another problem to deal with. His presence on defence was invaluable when United chased an equaliser. 7

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OFF-BALL WORK:

DI MARIA: Started out wide and found plenty of space to receive the ball. Was in a perfect position to collect a fine through-ball from Wayne Rooney in the first half but could not deliver the finish. Then lost his cool in second half and was sent off after a complete brainstorm.

SANCHEZ: Was always finding space to work and United struggled to keep an eye on him. Found good shooting positions and never stopped trying to win back possession when United had the ball.

PASSING:

DI MARIA: Some of his deliveries from the right were exquisite and he played plenty of good short balls too.

SANCHEZ: Had a lot of touches and often looked to play in his team-mates, although he did not always find the target.